Heartbreak Hotel

Hi everyone! How are you doing? How has December been treating you and will you be travelling for the holidays as well as New Years? For me, I’ll be spending the Christmas holiday in Los Angeles and I am still contemplating on how I want to bring in the new year.

Since the year is coming to an end, today’s post titled “Heartbreak Hotel,” will be my last fashion post of twenty seventeen. Looking back at twenty seventeen, between all the self reflecting, taking leaps into the unknown, and wanderlusting adventures, the year was exactly what I needed. Through the adversities that twenty seventeen presented itself, I found myself at a standstill, and I knew that I needed to push myself towards to something new for my career and for myself. I still have a long way to go in terms of finding what I am looking for, but I am in no rush since I have an amazing support system all over the world. In terms of my fashion, I found that I styled myself in more statement pieces and continued to challenge myself to be more confident. And so, I hope in twenty eighteen, the year will present new adventures, lessons, and more content on the Crystal Avenue.

Before I delve into “Heartbreak Hotel,” I wanted give a shout out to my siblings, Michelle and Daniel, who challenge me to constantly stay creative and grounded when life throws me for a curve ball. “Heartbreak Hotel,” is for you both and for those who are a work in progress and healing.

Today’s look was inspired by Tiffany from Girl’s Generation’s song “Heartbreak Hotel” (acoustic version/link is available here as well). My brother had shared Tiffany’s song with me earlier this year, and I was immediately hooked because of the lyrics. The lyrics resonated with me because it reminded me of the aftermath of my heartbreak and being unable to move forward with my life. It also reminded me that it is okay to heal at your pace. I know the heartbreak hotel is only a figurative place, but when you have your heartbroken and are trying to heal, the heartbreak hotel feels like a very real place that you won’t be able to check out of. And so, I wanted to create a lookbook and a story dedicated to “Heartbreak Hotel,” and felt that my sister would be the best person to capture my vulnerability without judgment. Although I am no longer in that state of mind, remember to take the time to heal yourself.

I don’t know about you, but do you ever go back to place that you had spent time with someone who is no longer in your life and feel heavy? I chose to go back to a location where I had spent time with a former love to shoot this lookbook. I personally did not think at the time that I would feel anything, but numbness. However I ended up feeling an array of emotions, which I felt I had articulated through the shots below:

Although I no longer feel empty since it has been a few months since I shot this look, I wanted to showcase the rawness of someone who would be wandering in a heartbreak hotel. Thus for my look, I chose a crimson red dress from Express as my focal point and to represent a broken heart. I didn’t want to go the stereotypical route and choose a dark color, as many choose to wear dark colors because they feel lifeless. I wanted color to push myself to heal and to find myself liking colors again. I also decided to add my trench coat from my previous post to give a mysterious vibe to the look and story.

On a happier note, have a wonderful Christmas and new year. I’ll see you all in 2018.